Home For Christmas
by ElfJet
Summary: this was a Santa exchange challenge on the DWP com on LJ. The promt: What I want: One of the girls starts to suffer with serious ear infections. She is in and out of doctor's appointments and one day Andy accompanies her to an appointment, Andy is able to soothe the pain with soft sounds etc and understands as she used to suffer from chronic ear infections herself. The girl is in


**DISCLAIMER:** The Devil Wears Prada and its characters belong to Lauren Weisberger and 20th Century Fox. No infringement intended.  
**AUTHOR'S NOTE:** – this was a Santa exchange challenge on the DWP com on LJ. The promt: What I want: One of the girls starts to suffer with serious ear infections. She is in and out of doctor's appointments and one day Andy accompanies her to an appointment, Andy is able to soothe the pain with soft sounds etc and understands as she used to suffer from chronic ear infections herself. The girl is in a lot of pain and the medicine doesn't seem to help so she begs Miranda to contact Andy.  
**ARCHIVING:**Only with the permission of the author.

**Home For Christmas**

Caroline was lying in bed once again because of an ear infection and hating every minute of it. The idiot doctor had given her the usual amount of pain medicine but apparently she had developed some kind of resistance because it sure wasn't helping any.

She really had no idea why she was still getting these annoying infections. From what she gathered between her last time and this, it was like a kids-disease. And if she knew one thing, it was that she was no longer a kid!

And why where everyone being so loud?

Not really caring that it was the fever that was making her so sensitive she tried to get out of bed and out to the staircase to yell at the noise makers. That was the plan. Unfortunately she only got halfway there before collapsing in a heap just beside her bed just too tired to get up.

Miranda was walking up the stairs to check on Caroline, when she heard the dull thump of something hitting the floor inside her daughter's room. Thinking Caroline must have dropped something she was shocked to find her baby on the floor struggling to get up, the fever having drained most of her strength.

Falling to the floor beside her daughter scooping her into her arm and placing her back in bed Miranda could just make out what Caroline was saying.

"Please get Andy…she'll know what to do…hurt's so much…people so noisy…"

Miranda checked her temperature making sure that her baby girl didn't need to go to the emergency room. She still had a fever but not too severe. Sighing in relief she sat down next to the bed thinking about why her little girl would want to see her second assistant.

Was it a good idea to call on the young woman? Even though she was loathed to admit it Andrea had surprised her. After the initial stumbles and falls the "smart, fat girl" had actually become excellent at anticipating her needs, often making sure they were handled before she had the chance to express her wish for them. And if she had to be totally honest, if with no one else but herself, then she hadn't regarded Andrea as fat for some time now. In fact she found the younger woman quite appealing.

NO, she wasn't going to go down that unfruitful road while her baby was in obvious pain, which lead back to the question of, should she call Andrea and why would Caroline want her to in the first place.

Movement in the bed beside her drew her attention and Caroline's small voice once again begging her to call Andrea mad the decision for her.

Taking the cell out of her pocket and exiting her daughter's room she hit the speed dial for Andrea. As she waited for her assistant to pickup she tried not to analyze just why it was that she had Andrea on speed dial and not Emily.

Finally the girl answered and the breathlessness in her voice told Miranda that getting to the phone had been a struggle. Never one to wait she started talking as soon as the connection was made, desperately trying not to notes what the girls voice was doing to her.

"come to the town house, I'll be expecting you within 45 minutes" just before she disconnected the call she could hear the voice on the other end exclaim a strangled "b..but"

Forty-five minutes later she was still sitting by her daughter waiting when the doorbell rang. Walking down the stairs once again debating the wisdom of her decision she concluded that there really wasn't anything she could do about it now anyway and that she would have to concentrate on not showing too much of her feelings for the young woman about to enter her home.

On the other side of the door a frazzled looking Andrea was standing looking less than happy about being summoned. Now that she saw Andrea she suddenly remembered giving the girl some day's off for Christmas so she could visit her family in some god forsaken part of the country. And still here she was ready to drop everything as soon as her boss called. Filing that piece of information away for later Miranda stepped aside to let the young woman inside.

Taking the lead up the stairs Miranda was again sensing the less than stellar mood of the woman behind her. But despite that she also had the distinctive feeling of having her ass stared at. So she put a little more swagger into her ascent than necessary, smiling when Andrea tripped and almost fell on the next step.

Maybe it was time to admit that it wasn't only her daughter who needed the beautiful woman now following her into Caroline's room.

At first Andrea seemed confused as to why they were standing in one of the twins rooms but soon connected the dots as Caroline whimpered and once again called out for Andy. Miranda watched as the brown haired woman crossed over to her daughter's bed and kneeled down beside it whispering softly into her ear.

Unable to look away Miranda stood silently in the doorway amazed by how natural she found the scene before her. She heard soft singing from the other side of the room which apparently soothed the pains of her little girl. While still singing, Andrea wet Caroline's brow with a damp cloth and stroking though the strawberry blond hair.

Miranda was sure she lost count of time and the number of songs her assistant went through before Caroline was once again asleep, no longer whimpering as before.

As the young woman's fingers trailed though fine locks of hair one last time she slowly stood up from her kneeled position but not turning to face Miranda. Miranda could see there was a slump to the young woman's shoulders and they were tense like there was a battle going on inside the woman standing beside her daughter.

Sure that nothing more would be said Miranda slowly closed the distance and stopped beside the lovely woman who had once again aided her in her time of need. Debating on what to say next Miranda was surprised to hear Andrea speak first.

"I think we need to have a talk"

Though the words where whispered so not to disturb the sleeping girl there was no mistaking the meaning. They were going to have the talk right away and Andrea was not going to take no for an answer.

Turning and taking the lead out of the room Miranda led them into the upstairs study she used when she couldn't sleep at night and went to work on the Book. Soft steps behind her told her that Andrea had followed and entered behind her. Closing the door taking a deep breath she turned to look at the young woman she now acknowledge had stolen her heart only to be meet with Andréa's back.

Still not comfortable showing how much she was affected be the younger woman what came out of her mouth sounded a lot colder than she intended.

"By all means take all night you know how much I like waiting"

Apparently that had be the wrong thing to say because the younger woman swirled around to face her anger radiating from every pore of her body, her thick brown hair arching across her face only to settle on her shoulder.

"God damn it Miranda just what do you think you're playing at?" Miranda noted the way Andrea seemed to be speaking without moving her lips having them in a permanent snarl.

" You call me here late at night expecting me to cross the city in under an hour forcing me to cancel my trip home. A holiday you approved by the way. Expect me to help your offspring, and now you're talking like that to me?"

God the girls was beautiful when she was angry, came as an unwanted thought as Andrea was ranting and Miranda really should be paying attention. Apparently she had missed some of it because once her focus was back on the irate woman before her what she was saying had nothing to do with what she last heard. Was the room smaller or had Andrea just gotten closer?

"And to think I didn't even question it! I just dropped everything, once again bending to your every whim scared that something terrible had happened to you"

Wait what? Had Andrea been concerned for her? Maybe the signs she had detected wasn't hallucinated after all. Maybe just maybe the feeling she had secretly been harboring for her assistant for some time weren't so one-sided after all.

Hope swelled in her chest as Miranda once again turned her attention on the goddess of fury before her noting that the ranting had stopped and that she was being closely observed by the young woman.

"Are you even paying attention?" Miranda was sure she could hear a bit of despair in the tone and once again she could see that the distance between them had been reduced meaning that there was only two feet between them.

Softening her eyes and taking a steep forward invading Andrea's personal space all she could utter was a soft "oh Andréa" as she cupped a soft cheek in her right hand. Letting a smile tease her lips when her hand wasn't rejected and the anger seemed to drain from the other woman.

Deciding to explain just a little speaking softly like when you don't want to scare a timid animal. Miranda almost breathed the words "I always pay attention to you darling" the endearment slipping from her lips like she'd been saying it for years.

And then Andrea was kissing her and it was soft and sweet just like Miranda had always wanted to be kissed but that no man was capable of. The young woman's hands cupped her jaw and her fingers caressed the nap of Miranda's neck making her moan and pull the young woman closer.

When Andrea pulled away Miranda couldn't avoid the whimper of protest that escarped from her still parted lips. But one look from Andrea and she knew she would have to curb her desire for a bit still.

"What does this mean?" the younger woman asked.

"This better not be some ploy I don't think I'll be able to take it if you're just playing with my head" Miranda hated the uncertainty that had taken residence in those pretty chocolate eyes.

Figuring that honesty was the best policy Miranda searched for the right words.

"This is not a new development Andrea. No this I believe has been underway for some time. Why else do you think I made you and not Emily go to the doctor's office with Caroline? I knew I could trust you to be gentle and kind. I don't trust just anyone with my children!"

The young woman in her arms exhaled a content sigh and hugged her. It had been a very long time since Miranda had gotten a hug from another adult and she was loving it. Sure the hug was lovely but it also brought into focus that Andrea was pressed intimately against her and that she could feel the swell of breasts against her own and the delicious scent of shampoo and Andrea was making her a bit light headed.

Trying to collect herself Miranda started to speak again.

"I'm sorry" well that hadn't been what she was going say but now she might as well finish.

"I'm sorry I call you away from your own family but I'm not sorry that you're here. I very much would like you to stay for my sake but also for my daughter who appears to only respond to you right now"

Andrea became very still and Miranda feared that she had said something wrong and started to pull out of the embrace but was stopped by strong arms tightening around her.

"What about your other daughter?" a valid question but she had a suspicion that her girls had noticed her fascination of her second assistant and that they didn't mind it as long as she was happy.

"It'll be quite alright they already know that you are special to me" which was true.

"Okay I'll stay but we really need to figure out just what this means for us personally and professionally" the girl was right of cause but she really didn't want to concentrate on that when she had her arms full of a lovely brown haired woman so instead she said.

"Of cause we will but right now I want you to kiss me again" it was just as good the second time. Even better because she now knew that Andrea wasn't going to disappear she would be there till morning, and longer if Miranda had anything to say about it, helping her not worry out of her mind about her sick little girl and her own sanity.

**The End**


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